A woman, who was riding pillion on a motorcycle, died on the spot when her two-wheeler collided with a tempo, in Satara on Sunday. Her 47-year-old husband was seriously injured in the accident and died two days later, but only after saving three lives; his heart, liver and kidney were donated to three recipients at Ruby Hall Clinic on Tuesday. The injured man was brought to Ruby Hall Clinic, but declared brain dead on Monday morning. He hailed from a farmer’s family in Satara, said Dr Sanjay Pathare, medical director at Ruby Hall Clinic.

The man’s father gave the go-ahead to donate his organs — heart, a kidney and liver — to recipients, said Surekha Joshi, medical social worker at Ruby Hall Clinic. According to Dr Manoj Durairaj, cardiac surgeon, the heart was transplanted into a 55-year-old diabetic man from Daund, who only had 15 -20 per cent heart function. “It was difficult for him to walk or even use the washroom,” said Durairaj. The heart transplant procedure was completed within four hours on Tuesday. The liver and one kidney were also transplanted into recipients at Ruby Hall Clinic.

Aarti Gokhale, coordinator at Zonal Transplant Coordination Committee, Pune, said that this was the ninth heart transplant conducted in Pune this year.